Report shares if West Brom will enter free agent market after Maja injury blow

West Brom ‘Highly Unlikely’ to sign free agent striker after Josh Maja injury blow
West Brom are “highly unlikely” to enter the free agent market for a new striker after Josh Maja was ruled out for two months with an ankle injury, report BirminghamLive.

Writing on their official website (19 September), the news outlet report that the club’s current financial situation means a move for a free agent likely won’t be happening.

Maja won’t play again until after the November international break, while Daryl Dike won’t return until 2024 from his ruptured Achilles which leaves Brandon Thomas-Asante as the only natural striker option in the squad.

“It’s a blow of course to Carlos Corberan, who has already been managing Albion without being able to call on Daryl Dike, who remains out until December at the earliest, and having sanctioned loan moves for young pair Jovan Malcolm and Mo Faal over the course of the summer transfer window in order to increase their first-team minutes elsewhere,” they wrote.

“A move for a free agent is considered to be highly unlikely too, when taking into account Albion’s financial situation.”

 

Shock

 

It’s absolutely no shock that the club don’t have the money to sign a free agent to replace Maja, otherwise we would have signed one when Corberan made it clear he wanted a third striker option.

We now have just one striker for at least the next 10 Championship games, and the manager made it clear in his press conference that they would have to look at alternatives from within the squad.

 

Grady Diangana, Jed Wallace, John Swift and Jeremy Sarmiento were all name-checked as potential new strikers, with Matt Phillips likely to be seen as the main back-up for the role despite being the first-choice left-winger right now.

The season hasn’t got off to the best or worst start but a lack of goals is a clear issue, and that will only be exacerbated in the coming weeks with a lack of options if things are going wrong.

 

Hopefully Corberan can keep the defence strong and find a way to navigate this issue without entering the transfer market, because as usual the cash to do it just isn’t there.